Search This Blog

158 People Mourned as Probe into Air India Crash Begins

Early reports indicate that Air India’s Boeing 737-800 veered off a hilltop runway upon landing at Mangalore airport in southern India on Saturday, May 22, killing 158 people. The Air India Express Flight #182 plane was arriving from Dubai when it overshot the runway, broke into pieces and burst into flames. A large crowd looked on in horror as Indian rescue personnel hurried to put out fires and search for survivors. Only eight people out of the 166 aboard the plane survived in what is now the worst Indian air disaster in a decade.

Safety authorities, including the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) have begun their investigation into what caused this tragic accident. Investigators will look into possible technical failures as well as how far and how fast the plane landed on the runway. Weather conditions and visibility conditions were good at the time of the crash.

If early reports are correct, this catastrophic disaster will be dubbed a “runway excursion,” a term given by safety experts for crashes involving runway overruns. In the past 20 years, runway excursions have accounted for nearly 40% of all commercial aircraft accidents, with most occurring during landings. Many runway excursions are caused by unsafe runways or lack of cockpit discipline. Investigators will look at the size and makeup of the safety zone at the end of the runway in Mangalore airport, which is reported to be about 300 feet, far smaller than recommended by international safety standards. Authorities will also look into the possibility of pilot error.

The air crash investigation is being conducted by India's Directorate General of Civil Aviation. The U.S. team helping India with the investigation consists of Joe Sedor, the NTSB’s Senior Air Safety Investigator, an NTSB flight operations specialist, an NTSB aircraft systems specialist, and technical advisors from the Federal Aviation Administration and Boeing.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular Posts

Six people died on May 13, 2019, in a collision between two
floatplanes in Alaska that has safety experts cautioning passengers about small
aircraft. Alaska has been the site of three fatal small plane crashes in just
over one week, in addition to several across the US in recent months, highlighting
the many safety issues concerning small planes. Experts say the problem
lies in having fewer regulations over smaller, privately owned aircraft
compared with commercial airlines. Floatplanes Carrying Tourists
Both floatplanes involved in the collision carried tourists
from a Princess Cruises ship on a stopover in Ketchikan, Alaska. One of the
companies offered an excursion sold through Princess Cruises, while the other
was independently provided. The tourists were being taken to Ketchikan from the
Misty Fjords National Monument area at around 12:21 pm local time when the two
small planes—both float-equipped—collided at approximately 3,350 feet.
Bodies of 2 missing after Alaska float plane…

Hundreds of
passengers aboard a Viking Ocean Cruises ship experienced a dramatic rescue by
helicopter, with several later hospitalized, when the Viking Sky suffered
engine failure in the middle of incredibly stormy seas. Passengers told
reporters about their harrowing ordeals, either of being airlifted off the
listing ship in the darkness or remaining onboard and praying the vessel did
not sink. Officials are now questioning why the ship was in the sea at all,
given warnings about stormy weather, and how multiple engines failed at the
same time. Given the
number of people onboard the Viking Sky when its engines failed, it is
incredibly lucky that there were not more severe injuries, a common concern in boating accidents. What
Happened on the Viking Sky? On March
14, the Viking Sky cruise ship began a 12-day voyage from the city of Bergen,
in Norway. After it left the city of Tromso, on its way to Stavanger, the
ship's four engines shut down as the vessel encountered a massive storm…